Southampton Saison | Southampton Publick House

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Reviews by MJR:

First off, the clean and understated label design adds a touch of class and elegance. The cork came out with such a strong pop that the backforce pulled the yeast dregs up from the bottom, lessening the chance of a clear first pour. Not so! After a minute or three, a careful and mostly clear pour reveals a pale gold body with a hint of orange down the center. The carbonation bubbles are so plentiful that there appears to be a tornado in the center of the glass. Massive, thick, creamy tan head is remarkable slow to fade. Wonderful lacing. Each fresh pour causes the head to erupt again.

Aroma is incredibly rustic and earthy, with fresh hay, grass, oranges, nectarines, lemons, black pepper spiciness, flowers, leafy hop, cotton candy, faint leather, and chalky yeast. Simply put, a barnyard in a glass. The flavor starts off with a small burst of hop bitterness, then turns farm-like with layer after layer of earthy complexity. Orange and nectarine cocktails black pepper spiciness fresh grass and hay earthy, chalky yeast medicinal phenols a splash of sourness and tart acidity on the finish Styrian hops and oh-so-faint pine needles in the aftertaste. Theres a hint of malt sweetness present the entire time, but it doesnt ever fully develop. Yeast pour towards the end turns it a murky iced tea color and thickens it up some. Medium in body, with a hefty level of carbonation that lightens the body perhaps a bit too much. Finishes crisp and acidic, with a cleansing dryness.

Saisons are one of my favorite styles, and this one easily compares with the authentic Belgian examples. How does Phil do this? Southampton continues to impress

First sip brings a pale grainy maltiness with a deluge of fruity flavors. Hints of green apple, orange, lemon and pineapple roll over the palate with a wonderful sour tartness accompanying them. Earthy yeast notes impart a mellow barnyard flavor and some peppery spiciness. Exceptionally balanced..this saison is truly a treat for the palate. I get a touch of green hops on the way down along with a snap of spicy bitterness. Lovely, lovely brew.

Mouthfeel is light and arid with a subtle creaminess and good carbonation. Incredibly refreshing...with each sip I get something new. Easily one of the best U.S. saisons I've yet to try. Cheers to Phil and the Southampton crew. If I had easier access to this brew I would drink it on a regular basis. The 750ml bottle is almost too small...how about a 1.5l bottle next time?? Thanks to dmeadows for the opportunity to sample this one.

A 750ml bottle, poured into a tulip glass. The beer was a clear golden color with a medium-sized white head. Some nice lacing was present also. It had a fruity aroma, sweet and candy-like. Fruit again in the taste, to me mostly pear, and some funky yeasty taste as well. I really enjoy that barnyard funkiness; it feels so good in the mouth. Wonder how this beer would cellar.

On tap at David Copperfields, NYC and what a treat it was to try out his fine product! Pours golden, with a puffy white head leaving moderate lacing. Nose of peppery spice and Belgian yeasty notes. Earthy, musty. Strong and bold flavors of yeasty phenolics, hint of bubblegum, more pepper and all things spicy. Large malty center and a crisp, spicy and snappy finish. Complex, flavorful, wonderful stuff. Seek out on tap.

This was bought at the brewery by a friend and brought back for my pleasure. Thanks, Dorothy!
This took an honest ten minutes to open! First, the cork broke at the bottle line, then I tried a bladed cork puller. No good. Then a cork screw. All that did was pulverize the goddam cork. Eventually I got it with the screw, but Jeez! It was so friggin' tight!
I had this in a Kasteel glass.

Pours a cloudy gold/orange with a two finger head of white foam. The head drops fairly quickly to a coating and a ring. Minimal lacing. Looks highly effervescent.

Taste is tart, dry, musty, horsey, not much residual sweetness at all. A whole lotta flavors working in unison to give you one hell of a saison experience. Lemons and oranges, yeast, and wheat. Black pepper, coriander, they're all in there! Aftertaste is very long and pronounced. Awesome beer.

Mouthfeel is smooth but dry, like brut, highly effervescent. Finish is a strong grab at the back of the throat, but not like hop bitterness. Big burps!

As saisons go, this has to be a great one. It's got it all. Tart/sour, barnyard, prickly, moldy, spicy...What more do you want?

A-This beer pours a golden mustard yellow with a clear body and a strong carbonation of tiny bubbles. The big rocky head is pure white and keeps its shape above the rim. Nice lacing with each sip.

S- Nice soft citrus flavors with some floral notes and a faint hop note that really gives it depth. In the background there is a hint of sourness and a hint of peppery spice. The overall smell has a soft wheat or pale malt quality to it that is wonderful.

T- Nice fruity spice in the malt flavors followed by a slightly sour finish. The fruit notes are more orange and a faint lemon rather than grapefruit. The finish has a nice noble hop taste but the pepper notes and sour notes give it much more depth and balance. This beer has a nice dry finish but the note of green hops lingers.

M- Medium light mouthfeel with a slight tartness but no astringency. A bit of a watery mouthfeel and the carbonation is not noticed as much in the mouthfeel.

D- It looks like a yellow fizzy beer but it has so much depth and character in such a smooth refreshing beer it is mind boggling. The great flavors and nose are fruity and spicy but very thirst-quenching. This is a great style and a great beer.

750 ml bottle, sampled while watching the 2nd to last episode of the Sopranos. Sad night but very good beer. Beer poured into a Duvel tulip glass with a clear, darkish golden color and an almost 2 finger thickness fluffy white head. Nice big bubbles. The nose was earthy, funky and had definite citrus notes. The taste was complex and pleasing to the palate. Smooth citrus character and more of the earthy funkiness that i got in the aroma. There were some pronounced peppery spice notes in there as well. As my glass sat a bit and I re-tasted I got more pronounced notes of banana, clove, maybe some pineapple and lemon. Very smooth and somewhat light body makes this a very easy to drink beer. I paired it with some grilled shrimp and asparagus and it was great.

Pours a clear golden honey with a giant white head. This beer has a ton of carbonation that lasts forever and leaves great lacing. The smell is very pungent with cloves,lemon,floral,and citrus scents.
The taste is like the smell,full of lemon,citrus,candy sugar,clove,banana,and floral flavors and spices. Mix the flavors with very heavy carbonation and you have this beer. The m/f is light and all flavors mix very well.
A damn good beer and one of America's better Saison's.

A Belgium saison without the barnyard aroma. Hazy orange with some head and staying lace. Aggressive carbonation for full mouth feel. Refreshing orange grapefruit boldness. Bit of toothpaste afterastte from spices. Thank you for sharing Doug Shoemaker and Joey Capps.

Aroma is fresh and lemony, just a hint of band-aid, really no funk, just fresh and softly fruity. Extremely lively effervescence on the tongue. Just a hint of sourness, a nice balance of sweetness with fairly forceful hoppy bitterness which carries through in the long finish. A nice fresh example of a well-made saison, if a bit clean and tame for the style. Neverthess an excellently drinkable beer.

750ml caged and corked bottle. Hazy golden with high natural carbonation and a big, fluffy white head. Great aroma, earthy and a bit peaty with hints of spices. Good, malty, spicy flavour with notes of citrus; quite tart. Dry, spicy finish. An excellent brew that made me crave for more.

Poured out of a 750ml caged and corked bottle. The ale poured a straw color with orange highlights, nice white head that left minimal lacing. The smell is citrus, pepper, corriander, nice and distinct. The taste starts off citrus sweet but finishes with an earthy bitterness, but not too bitter to slow down the drinkability. Very nice range of flavors. Well carbonated with a light mouthfeel. Very good saison, I'm very impressed.

Appearance: An obfuscated shade of titian (obfuscated and titian being my secret words for today), with strange little chunks that came in two craptacular colors, cheese curd white and corky brown. Thank goodness there weren't too many. The shallow cake of yeast made a half-moon in my glass.

Smell: Creamy yet spicy, and heavy on the yeast. A little bit of cork too, and with a nice herbal hoppy finish.

Taste: Carbonation on the lower spectrum, which put the yeast and citrus flavors in front, without having any other distinguished flavors. I guess I had high expectations over this one and was a bit let down.

A 750 mL bottle purchased at Half Time this past July. The cage has 2005 emblazoned on it.

A: The ale is a pale yellow color with a thick 1.5 finger head. The head slowly dissipates but is thick while it lasts.

S: The ale has a softy, fruity aroma that betrays citrus and yeast and a mere hint of brettanomyces sourness.

T: The ale has a funky taste that is punctuated by a dry, tart finish. The hint of brett that gives that flavor is very well-balanced, not going overboard like one or two other saisons that I have tried. The flavors that pop up before the tartness include some mint, berries and grapes.

M: The tartness is well-controlled, allowing the floral tastes to shine before they are cut off.

D: I generally find the tartness to be a negative quality, but here it adds a very nice finish. The dryness instinctively makes you go for another sip.

This is my first beer from Southampton. Pours into my Unibroue glass and imediatley the head jumps to four fingers and almost over the rim of the glass. Head is rocky off white. Body is a hazy orange wheat color. Nose is fresh with raw wheat and soft citrus with almost a vanilla cream feel and a bit of zest. At first sip you are taken by the sharp boldness for this style. A strong mix of peppery spices, nice hops, and wheat laced alchol all balance well on the palate. For a saison this is quite bold, but nicely balanced. This balance leads to a very clean mouthfeel with a slight sour hop feel. Drinkability borders on refreshing and interesting.

So another one off the BA top 100 bites the dust for me! I had been waiting to try this one for a while and had it hiding out in the fridge waiting foe me. Last night went to grab something else but this came out, took it as a sign and went with it. Poured a very nice hazy yellow amber with lots of suspension and a good amount of carbonation visible through it. A really nice size three inch head of fizzy and foamy white lace formed on top and just ever so gradually settled down leaving just about a half inch on the top and a good amount of side lace. Smell was full of yeast, very light with a peach or apricot tone to it. Mixed in were several light spices, maybe some nutmeg, coriander and such which added some depth. The flavor was great. Nothing overpowering and I can see why it would get such high marks. Great spiced and fruity yeast mixed in with some earthy fresh grass flavor and a touch of some grain. Really great depth to it actually. Very nice medium body was more then amply carbonated and gave a rich texture. Superb drinkability, not a touch of alcohol in this one and just a great overall flavor profile. I really enjoyed this one, and I am not normally one for the Saison style, but this was great. I could have had another if I had it. One of the best crafted beers in terms of complexity without being overbearing that I have seen in quite a while. I would highly recommend getting your hands on this one if you havent already!

Fuzzy orange golden beer with a shy white head that let itself dies slowly on the glass.

Smell is fruity, spicy, yeasty, grain and farmlike smells (barn)

Taste is reffreshing, the fruity notes come out and hit you followed by hops note that comes end with a fresh shy malty flavors. Spices come and take the whole around to bring a nice bouquet of aromas.

Golden color with lots of tiny bubbles and a big fluffy sticky white head. The brew sparkels and looks wonderful in the glass. Fruity slightly rich and regal smelling. The taste is of tropical fruits upfront with a smooth malty white pepper sharp hop finish. The look is unreal. The taste is very good as well. The brew is lighter in the mouth but still is coating and rich for such a drinkable beer. Very nice.